72 73 LATINO MAGAZINE LATINO MAGAZINE

A
spate of 2014 media studies tells us what we already know:
Latinos are absent on the big and small screens, while largely
filling a majority of movie theater seats and over-indexing for
broadcast, cable, streaming and gaming media.
The National Hispanic
Foundation for the Arts co-
sponsored, together with the
National Association of Latino
Producers, a study by Columbia
University professor Francis Negron
called Latino Media Gap.The key
findings of that study were that
Latino characters are increasingly
marginalized, that stereotypes
abound and that consumer pressure
does have an impact on media
decisions. And a University of
Southern California study was aptly summarized by the New York
Daily News as Latino stars barely there (or nude).The two studies can
best be understood by examining Hollywoods 7 deadly Latino sins.
First:Whitewashed CastingLatino characters, played by non-Latinos.
When folks like Ben Affleck take on roles like Tony Mendes in Warner
Bros. Pictures Argo, it perpetuates a practice of dressing-up Latino
characters by using white actors.The same holds for roles on TV series.
For example, Lili Taylor as Captain Sandra Maldonado on Foxs Almost
Human didnt even try to portray the character ethnically. Similarly,
Nicole Ari Parker as District Attorney Jacqueline Martinez on TNTs
Murder in the First does not convey any sense of Latino identity. My
first thought while watching Sakina Jaffrey as Linda Alvarado on
Netflixs House of Cards was that I had never seen that actress before,
only to learn that Jaffrey is of Indian heritage. Cliff Collins as Javier
Acosta on Foxs Gang Related is another casting decision thats difficult
to understand. Collins make-up looks deliberately dark, and his
Spanish dialogue sounds diction- coached, not native.Why go to all
this effort to convert a non-Latino actor into a Latino stereotype?
Many Latinos see through the ruse immediately and get the sub rosa
message that a Latino was not good enough to play a Latino character.
Second: BFFs. Increasingly, Latino male actors are playing
significantly fewer leading roles and more supporting roles in which
they are relegated to playing the principal actors best buddy.These
actors assist the scene or principal actor, but the storyline rarely
revolves around their character. Dont misunderstand, these are
competent and experienced actors, who do get on-air face time,
but their characters have limited plot relevance. Examples include:
Raymond Cruz as Detective Julio Sanchez on TNTs Major Crimes;
Marisa Ramirez as Detective Maria Baez on CBSs Blue Blood; Manny
Montana as Johnny Turturro on USAs Graceland; and Jon Huerta as
Javier Esposito on Castle. If these professionals received equal time and
ENTERTAINMENT BY FELI X SANCHEZ
more character development opportunities, wed see them nominated
for Emmys in the Best Supporting Actor categories; but because they are
cast in truncated roles, they never receive the industry recognition they
deserve.
Third: Se Habla EspaolKinda. The use of interspersed Spanish-
language dialogue has been increasing on TV and the big screen since
its successful use in Universal Pictures Fast and Furious franchise films.
Over the last two summers, FOXs The Bridge and Gang Related and
FXs The Strain advanced the use of Spanish dialogue with English
subtitles. On Gang Related, gratuitous Spanish-language dialogue for the
sake of bonding with Latino viewers is experienced as contrived and
fake. In contrast, The Bridge has set a high bar for the authentic use of
regional Spanish by native speakers, who transcend language barriers and
seamlessly present a dramatic bilingual storyline. At the other extreme, it
was a disastrous experiment on CBSs failed Rob!
Fourth: International Latinos vs. U.S.-Latino actors. Hollywood has always
preferred the international Latino to the U.S. Latino.The international
Latino is often whiter and more familiar to Hollywood, but these actors
dont always resonate with U.S. Latino and non-Latino audiences. For
example, ABCs The Bachelor featured Venezuelan-born and U.S.-raised
Juan Carlos Galaviswell-intentioned casting that backfired for many
reasons, but mostly because of the astonishing cultural differences that
were out of sync with American sensibilities.
Lets examine the canvas painted by FXs The Strain, executive
produced/co-created and directed by Mexican-born Guillermo Del
Toro.The beautiful Argentine-born actress Mia Maestro plays Dr. Nora
Martinez, straddling the international fence: legitimately a Latina, yet
closer to a European profile. Contrast her to the Latino familyon
the same showfeaturing Miguel Gomez (Bless me Ultima) and Adriana
Barraza (Amores Perros). Miguels character is a tattooed, muscle tee-
wearing son of an undocumented, Spanish-speaking, hard-working
Mexican woman.The mother and son characters represent lower-class
immigrants.This bifurcated social class portrayal, contrasting an educated
Latina of European heritage with poor mestizos, is a shameful formulaic
perpetuation of telenovela class distinctions.
Fifth: Sex Gods and Goddesses. I am a fan of Sofia Vergara, who, as
one of Hollywoods highest-earning actors at $30 million last year
(according to Forbes), has developed an entertaining persona that is
a mash-up between Latinas Rita Hayworth and Charo. My concern
relates to the singularity and narrowness of the sex kitten/boy toy roles
that have become a Latino staple.This tendency is not limited to ABCs
Modern Family or Troublemaker Studios Machete Kills, but extends to Eva
Mendes in Universals 2 Fast and 2 Furious and to Zoe Saldana in Sony
Pictures La Colombiana.The sexualized Latin image is not limited to
Latinas; it has ensnared Adam Rodriguez in Warner Brothers Magic Mike
and William Levy in Univisions Triunfo del Amor.
Sixth: Fuzzy Math. Hollywood rarely visualizes Latinos in the
future or in locations like Los Angeles or New York, which often
serve as a backdrop for blockbuster films. A perfect example is NBCs
The Night Shift, which (although the show looks like it was filmed
in Lubbock) is set in San Antonio,Texas. Although 56 percent of
San Antonios population is Mexican American, not one Mexican
American actor was cast as a series regular.
Paramounts recent Star Trek sequels present a more complicated
racial/ethnic issue. In the film, the Dominican and Puerto Rican
actress Zoe Saldana played the iconic Lt. Ohura, a black character,
but since Zoe is also Latina, the diversity boxes get double checks.
Similarly, Cuban American Gina Torres plays black characters on
USA Networks Suits and NBCs Hannibal, but her Afro-Latino
ethnicity skews the actual Latino representational numbers.This
is in contrast to Afro-Latina actress Daniella Alonso, who plays a
Latina character, Dr. Landry De La Cruz, on NBCs The Night Shift.
Characters should be clearly
defined as either Afro-Latino or
black. Martin Sheen, born Ramn
Antonio Gerardo Estvez, has
always said that he is Latino by
birth but Irish by profession, an
acknowledgement that his roles
shouldnt be misperceived as true
Latino representations. Do we
really believe that Cameron Diaz is
always playing a Latina character?
Hollywood still does not
understand that Latinos are not a
race, but a community made up
of many ethnic groups.We need
to show all the segments of this
community; the issue is context. A film like Warner Bros. Pictures Her
is set in Los Angeles, which has a 49 percent Latino population, yet
it reflects an almost all-white city. A casting director must present an
accurate reflection of America and must also ask the question: Does
this actor represent the right ethnicity for San Antonio? Miami? New
York? Understanding diversity is not hard, but if there are no Latino
casting directors, Latinos will get miscast, non-Latinos will be cast as
Latinos and actors will be asked to leverage their ethnicity for lip-
service diversity purposes.
Seventh:Villains. If a Latino actor is lucky enough to be cast in
a lead role, that role is often that of the bad guy. Such roles have
common characteristics: a friend or colleague you trust, who
inevitably betrays you; a boss or authority figure who cuts corners;
a complicated cable character you love to hate. Kevin Alejandro
played such a role on CBSs Golden Boy. Alejandros character was
brash, a bully, a jerk, a jealous opportunist who never failed to blow
every good opportunity that came into his life. Alejandro played that
role opposite heart-throb Theo James (Divergent). Benjamin Bratts
character on Foxs 24: Live Another Day was the CIA station chief in
London. He was the boss who betrayed his team. He found comfort
in colluding with the enemy; when his expiration date popped up, no
one cared. Bratts character was juxtaposed against series star Kiefer
Sutherland. In The Night Shift, Freddy Rodriguez plays the inept
and insensitive hospital administrator who is more concerned about
hospital costs than patient well-being. Rodriguezs character is out of
sync with the trauma doctors he manages; hes not respected. During
the first episode, he gets beat up by the handsome non-Latino lead.
Rodriguez plays opposite Australian beefcake Eoin Macken. Get the
pattern? Cool white guy has to put up with Latino a-hole.
Hollywoods
7 Deadly
Latino Sins
Fortunately, there are new projects on the horizon that bring balance
and well-thought-out entertainment. Seth McFarlanes animated Fox
comedy series Bordertown has hired brilliantly funny writers like Lalo
Alcaraz. ABCs comedy Cristela, starring South Texan Cristela Alonzo
and CWs Jane the Virgin, headlined by Gina Rodriguez have garnered
industry kudos and a strong social
media fan base in advance of their fall
premiere dates. If Cristela succeeds,
and I believe it will, perhaps it will
convince Saturday Night Lives Lorne
Michaels that real Latinas, not faux
Latinas are funny. After 39 SNL
seasons, no Latina has ever been hired
as a cast member on SNL; only 2
Latino comics have ever made the
cut. And Guillermo Del Toros
animated film The Book of Life, opening
in October, also looks promising.
I would be remiss if I didnt also
mention HULUs series East Los High,
a contemporary teen dramedy. Robert Rodriguezs El Rey network,
together with Troublemaker Studios are seizing on an opportunity to
lasso the male youth demographic, many of whom are Latino, mostly
under 20, who are drawn to gaming-like programming that presents a
heightened sense of reality.
FXs Sons of Anarchy, which features strong Latino characters, was
cited by Forbes as one of the seven best dramas of 2013. FXs The
Bridge, often mentioned as the new Breaking Bad, was also singled
out by Forbes as one of the best new shows. Both of these FX shows
feature Latinos in-culture as authentic images of Latino modernity.
The Bridge incorporates northern border Spanish, spoken authentically
by fluent speakers. The Bridge, like Showtimes Orange is the New Black,
also captures some of the best-drawn LGBT characters, projected
through a Latino lens. Sons of Anarchy features rugged Latino figures
who claim the screen in every scene.These shows set the future
standard for Latino imagery that will build audiences by attracting
both Latino and non-Latino viewers.
From an economic point of view, however, only one of the top 20
grossing films in 2013 featured Latino actors as principal characters.
The film Fast and Furious 6 earned more than $788 million worldwide.
The areas for improvement are clear.The best change agent wins a lot
of money and gets to write the next chapter in American media. All
thats needed is the vision and the will to get it done. S se puede!
Felix Sanchez is the Chairman and Co-founder of the National Hispanic
Foundation for the Arts.
The National Hispanic Foundation for the
Arts (NHFA) and the District of Columbias
Ofce on Latino Affairs (OLA D.C.) are
launching Qurum Weekend, September
29 & 30, 2014 in Washington, D.C.
Qurum Weekend will bring together
Latino-themed content providers and
diverse media platforms with a goal of
jumpstarting contemporary Latino lm, TV
and web content. The 2-day media pitch
weekend consists of a day of advice from
industry professionals, followed by a day
of one-on-one content pitches.
NHFAs annual Noche de Gala will be held
on October 1, 2014 at the Renaissance
Mayower Hotel in Washington, D.C. For
more info visit www.hispanicarts.org
SEPTEMBER 29 & 30, 2014
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Mia Maestro Miguel Gomez
Zoe Saldana
Cristela Alonzo